One Night

Chapter 139

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Audrey

Edwin and I only stood a few feet apart on the bridge, but it felt like miles. The cool night air nipped at my exposed skin, and I pulled my red cape a bit tighter around me, although it felt more like armor than to ward off the chill.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, staring at his outstretched hand. “It’s not our weekly… meeting.”

Edwin’s eyes, visible through the slits in his wolf mask, softened. The yellow glow I had noticed earlier seemed to dim slightly as he dropped his hand back to his side.

“That’s precisely why I came looking for you tonight, Audrey,” he said.

I felt my heart stutter at those words. He had come, even when he said he wouldn’t. He had come…. for me.

But Fiona’s words clanged through my head, ricocheting like silver bullets off the inside of my skull.

Manipulator..

I didn’t want to believe her. I knew I shouldn’t believe her. But despite my reservations, her words had made me… wary.

“Why?” was all I said.

He sighed, his shoulders slumping slightly. “I felt terrible about last week. I never meant to make it seem like I only wanted. to see you in private, or that our relationship was just “h**king up. And I certainly never wanted to see you cry. Seeing you upset like that… It broke my heart. I’m so sorry.”

His words stung. The memory of that night in our secret room flooded back, along with the hurt and confusion that had followed.

Then why did you make me cry?” I asked, my voice hardly more than a whisper.

Edwin flinched as if I had struck him. Even with the mask covering most of his face, I could see the pain in his eyes. “I was afraid of what might happen if Fiona saw us in public. If anything happened to you because of me, I… I couldn’t handle it

I swallowed hard, processing his words. “So… it wasn’t just h**king up in your eyes?” I asked, hating how small and vulnerable my voice sounded.

“No, Audrey. Never.” Edwin took a step closer, his voice taking on a more urgent tone. That*** scent washed over me, and I wanted to run to him, but I controlled myself.

my thoughts. “I never meant it that way,” he continued. “I thought… I thought that was how you saw it. But for me, it’s been so much more. Hearing you say it out loud-that you thought, maybe even hoped, that it was a relationship-just made jumbled. My words didn’t come out the way I mean them to.”

My heart raced even faster as he continued, “I care for you deeply, Audrey. I want you to be my girlfriend. I… I love you.” I felt like I might collapse, but I remained silent, waiting, watching. He paused, his eyes locked onto mine. I could see the sincerity in them, the vulnerability. There was that yellow glow again, faint and flickering like a candle in those gray depths.

“If things were different,” he said softly, removing his wolf mask to reveal his entire face in all of its square-jawed and stubbled glory, his black hair tousled as if he had been nervously tugging at it all week, “then I would be shouting it from the rooftops. But for now, if you’ll have me…”

09:30 Thu, Sep 19

Chapter 139

He took another step closer..

“I would like to ask you to be i

girlfriend.”

“Your… girlfriend…”

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“In secret,” he clarified, although his voice sounded pained. “Until we can safely be together in public.”

I froze, suddenly feeling overwhelmed by his confession. My heart felt fuller than ever, and part of me wanted to throw myself into his arms and tell him I loved him too.

The words were there, on the tip of my tongue. But Fiona’s claims echoed in my mind again, a dark seed taking root there.

Manipulator… Fated mate… He’s always done this

Logically, I knew she was full of it. I trusted Edwin. My Edwin. My shield, my big bad wolf.

But a louder, more terrified part of me didn’t know who to believe, what to say, what to do. The conflict tore at me, and I could only stand there, paralyzed.

“Audrey?” Edwin held his hand out for me again. “Are you okay?”

I wanted to cry. The pressure behind my eyes built, but I held it back. Instead, I took a deep breath, the cool night air filling my lungs.

“Is it true that Fiona is your fated mate?”

Edwin’s eyes

widened in surprise, his body tensing. “What? Of course not. Who told you that?”

“I saw Fiona tonight,” I explained. “She told me you two are fated”

Edwin shook his head vehemently, his hands clenching into fists at his sides. “Audrey, I told you not to listen to her. She’s a liar and a manipulator.”

“I don’t necessarily believe her,” I said quietly, looking down at the worn wooden planks of the bridge beneath my feet. “But hearing those words, ‘fated mate; it. It opened my eyes to something I’ve been avoiding this whole time. Something I knew all along, but I didn’t want to think about it. I figured if I ignored it then it would go away, but It didn’t. It won’t. It can’t

“Audrey, what are you saying?” Edwin’s voice was hardly more than a whisper.

I swallowed hard.

“You’re older than me by ten years, Edwin. That’s well after the time most people find their fated mate.” I looked up, staring right into those burning yellow eyes. “If you haven’t found yours yet, then… you likely will soon.”

Edwin took another step closer, his hand reaching out yet again. Audrey, I don’t care about that. You should know that.”

I took a step back, avoiding his touch. The hurt in his eyes as I did that was almost too much to bear, but I pressed on.

“But I’m just a human. Someday, you will find your fated mate, and it can’t be me.It could never be me.” My voice cracked as I continued, those hot, salty tears finally spilling over. “And then what will happen to me?”

Audrey-

“I’ll be thrown to the wayside, forgotten,” I said bitterly. “And no one will pity me because it’s just fate. You can’t get between

09:30 Thu, Sep 19 GD.

Chapter 139

fated mates. Especially not when you’re a human.”

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“Audrey, please.” Edwin reached for me again, his voice desperate. He was so close now I could practically taste him. “I only want you. I wouldn’t care if I found my fated mate. I would only ever want you. I love you. I can’t stop thinking about you, dreaming about you.”

But I stepped back again, my heart aching. The space between us felt like a chasm.

“I need… I need a little time to think before I accept your proposal to be your girlfriend,” I bit out. “I feel like I’m just setting myself up for heartbreak.”

Edwin’s hand fell back to his side, looking utterly defeated. His shoulders sagged, and even through the mask, I could see the pain etched in every line of his face.

“If you want space, then I’ll give it to you, even if it breaks my heart,” he whispered. “But Audrey, I do love you.”

Love… My love…..

So he had meant it that day at the fashion show, when he had put his arm around me and said he had been looking for me. He had truly meant it.

But for how long? Would he

still mean it when he finally, inevitably, found his mate?

Tears were streaming down my face now, hot against my cool skin. “I have to go,” I said softly, turning away.

As I walked away, I could feel Edwin’s eyes on me. It took every ounce of willpower not to look back, not to run into his arms and forget about all my fears and doubts. But somehow, I did it. Somehow, I slipped through the alley leading back to the main street, and I stopped feeling his gaze.

I eventually rejoined my friends, who were waiting at the edge of the festival grounds. Their laughter died as they saw me approach, concern quickly replacing their smiles,

Tina, seeing the tears in my eyes, immediately took my hand. Her touch was warm and comforting, a stark contrast to the chill I felt inside. “What happened?” she asked softly.

I shook my head, unable to form words. The others gathered around, watching me expectantly, and I felt small. So small.

When I said nothing. Tina squeezed my hand, understanding in her eyes. She turned to the others.

“Come on,” she said. “We’ve still got a festival to enjoy.”

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